International: Michalak vows to win his
place back after being overlooked again
22 January
2009
Spurned
fly-half Frédéric Michalak has vowed to win his place back
after being overlooked for France’s initial 30-man squad for
the RBS Six Nations.
Head
coach Marc Lièvremont named just one specialist fly-half –
Stade Francais’ Lionel Beauxis – but does has emergency
cover in the shape of Toulouse’s Jean-Baptiste Elissalde,
who can play at nine or 10.
“I’m
disappointed to not be playing for the national team. But as
happens every time, I tell myself that I have to keep on
working and test myself in order to get picked again,” said
Michalak.
The
Stade Toulouse player has struggled for consistency since
returning from a year away in South Africa, with his
place-kicking success rate down at a woeful 48.7%.
Lièvremont will hold a three-day training camp for his squad
next week before scaling it down to 23, although he said he
remained flexible.
That may
be an olive branch to Michalak, or more likely to his
injured club colleague at Toulouse David Skrela.
“It
isn’t excluded that certain people who don’t figure in the
30 will play in the tournament. Some players we are thinking
about are injured,” confirmed Lièvremont.
The
French coach also brushed off criticism that Beauxis has
been picked as the sole specialist fly-half despite playing
much of the season at full-back for Stade Francais.
“Even if
he plays sometimes at full-back for his club, Lionel Beauxis
is a number 10 for us,” he said. “We are not going to talk
about whether it is a negative or an advantage that he is
not playing in his position. That is also the case for
others. For us, he is a number 10.”
Conversely, he said he viewed Michalak – who plays fly-half
for Toulouse – as a better prospect at scrum-half.
“Since
his return to France we’ve said he is a player that we’re
counting on, given his potential, especially at scrum-half,”
confirmed Lièvremont. “Given the continuity that we’ve been
trying to put in place since November, and the good
performances of the other three scrum-halves, Fred is
behind.”
Lièvremont also explained his decision to
drop the out-of-form Francois Trinh-Duc, who he brought into
the French squad during last year’s tournament.
“International players, especially a young player like him,
go through poor periods,” he said. “Francois is a player we
appreciate enormously and who we believe in, but it wouldn’t
do him any good to give him the number 10 jersey for France
at this time.”
In an
otherwise largely predictable squad there were returns for
Toulouse backs Clement Poitrenaud and Florian Fritz, as well
as for Clermont’s flying winger Aurélien Rougerie. Perpignan
flanker Damien Chouly, capped twice in 2007 and part of
France’s under-21 world champions in 2006, was also
included, along with Clermont’s Julien Bonnaire.
“He has
been back in excellent condition and his performances have
been at a very good level,” said Lièvremont of Bonnaire. “It
is logical that he returns for us.”
Chouly
is one of 10 players named in the squad who are aged 23 or
under – a clear sign that Lièvremont, who coached the
under-21s to world cup success two years ago, is trying to
blend in the cream of the country’s youngsters.
France squad:
Backs: Maxime Medard (Toulouse), Clement Poitrenaud
(Toulouse), Cedric Heymans (Toulouse), Alexis Palisson
(Brive), Julien Malzieu (Clermont), Aurélien Rougerie
(Clermont), Yannick Jauzion (Toulouse), Florian Fritz
(Toulouse), Benoit Baby (Clermont), Maxime Mermoz
(Perpignan), Lionel Beauxis (Stade Francais), Jean-Baptiste
Elissalde (Toulouse), Sebastien Tillous-Borde (Castres),
Morgan Parra (Bourgoin).
Forwards:
Julien Bonnaire (Clermont), Thierry Dusautoir (Toulouse),
Fulgence Ouedraogo (Montpellier), Louis Picamoles
(Montpellier), Damien Chouly (Perpignan), Sebastien Chabal
(Sale), Lionel Nallet (Castres), Romain Millo-Chluski
(Toulouse), Jerome Thion (Biarritz), Guilhem Guirado
(Perpignan), Benjamin Kayser (Leicester), Dimitri Szarzewski
(Stade Francais), Nicolas Mas (Perpignan), Lionel Faure
(Sale), Fabien Barcella (Biarritz), Fabien Lecouls
(Toulouse).
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